Your Foot Trouble Data Base

Children of many ages can have legs of unequal lengths. The medical diagnosis for this condition is called leg length discrepancy. The difference in length can be as small as one centimeter and as large as six centimeters or more. The greater the discrepancy, the more your child will have difficulty walking and maintaining proper posture. Significant differences in leg length can also cause functional scoliosis and problems with other parts of the legs and lower body. This makes leg length discrepancy treatment very important in order to maintain proper health and function of the child. The greater the difference in leg length, the higher the likelihood of necessary treatment.

Causes

An anatomical short leg is due to several orthopedic or medical condition mechanisms. Often, one leg simply stops growing before the other one does and is called ?congenital?. We often see mother-daughters or father-sons who exhibit virtually the same degree of shortness on the same side. Often it is not known why this occurs, but it seems to account for approximately 25% of the population demonstrating a true LLD. Other causes of a true LLD include trauma or broken bones, surgical repair, joint replacement, radiation exposure, tumors or Legg-Calves-Perthes disease.

Symptoms

The symptoms of limb deformity can range from a mild difference in the appearance of a leg or arm to major loss of function of the use of an extremity. For instance, you may notice that your child has a significant limp. If there is deformity in the extremity, the patient may develop arthritis as he or she gets older, especially if the lower extremities are involved. Patients often present due to the appearance of the extremity (it looks different from the other side).

Diagnosis

A systematic and well organized approach should be used in the diagnosis of LLD to ensure all relevant factors are considered and no clues are overlooked which could explain the difference. To determine the asymmetry a patient should be evaluated whilst standing and walking. During the process special care should be used to note the extent of pelvic shift from side to side and deviation along the plane of the front or leading leg as well as the traverse deviation of the back leg and abnormal curvature of the spine. Dynamic gait analysis should be conducted during waling where observation of movement on the sagittal, frontal and transverse planes should be noted. Also observe head, neck and shoulder movements for any tilting.

Non Surgical Treatment

The key to treatment of LLD in a child is to predict what the discrepancy is at maturity. If it is predicted to be less than 2 cm., no treatment is needed. Limb length discrepancies of up to 2 or 2.5 cm. can be compensated very well with a lift in the shoe. Beyond 2.5 cm., it becomes increasingly difficult to compensate with a left in the insole. Building up the shoe becomes uncosmetic and cumbersome, and some other way of compensating for the discrepancy becomes necessary. The treatment of LLD is long-term treatment, and involves the physician and patient?s family working together as a team. The family needs to weigh the various options available. If leg lengthening is decided on, the family needs to understand the commitment necessary to see it through. The treatment takes 6 months to a year for completion, and complications can happen. But when it works, the results are gratifying.

Differences of an inch-and-a-half to two inches may require epiphysiodesis (adjusting the growth of the longer side) or acute shortening of the other side. Differences greater than 2.5 inches usually require a lengthening procedure. The short bone is cut and an external device is applied. Gradual lengthening is done over months to allow the muscles and nerves accommodate the new length.